So now you've got data. What do you do with it? You PLC! A PLC is a professional learning community. This is a group of faculty...
So now you've got data. What do you do with it? You PLC! A PLC is a professional learning community. This is a group of faculty...
La Hacienda Na Xamena, Ibiza, es considerado por muchos como el mejor hotel de la isla. Situado en un mágico acantilado, ofrece únicas emociones y experiencias.
I received a handout at a workshop I recently attended on different factors coaches can look for in classroom observations. Collecting quality evidence during observations and presenting it in a clear manner to teachers is such an important piece of improving teacher practice and student achievement…so this handout really got me thinking about what I look […]
Last year I had my first go at setting up a professional development room for teachers. It turned out to be an enjoyable space for teachers to work and learn in and has since been lovingly named the PD Pad. Given a new fire code put in place by the district (only 20% of walls […]
Blah..Blah, blah..Blah, blah. This is usually what’s running through my head when I’ve attended a bad PD session. And what do I mean by bad PD? I mean irrelevant, impractical, poorly managed, and (gasp!)…boring!! There’s pretty much nothing worse. So when you know how annoying bad PD can be, and you happen to be the […]
I stumbled across this idea on Pinterest and thought it would be perfect for my third and fourth graders! I often hear complaints from students that although others "allow" them to play games at recess, they often do not "include" them in the game. For example, in football they are on the team but the ball is never passed to them. I used this as a springboard for discussion on what teamwork really looks like. The Cup Stack is a great activity to facilitate teamwork. Some groups are able to complete the task very quickly while other groups must keep trying and trying to complete the task successfully. It's hard not to give up when things get frustrating, and this is a valuable lesson for children to learn in a safe environment. All you need is cups, rubberbands, and string. I decided to put my students into groups of 6, so I tied 6 equally spaced strings (about 1-2 feet long) around a single rubberband. Each group was given this device and 6 cups. The challenge is for the group to build a pyramid out of the paper cups (3 on the bottom, 2 in the middle, 1 on the top - can be adjusted for more cups). Group members cannot touch the cups with their hands or any other part of their bodies, even if a cup falls over or on the floor. Each person holds onto one of the strings that are attached to the rubber band and they use this device to pick up the cups and place them on top of each other (by pulling the rubber band apart and then bringing it back together over the cups). Some groups took 2 minutes to accomplish their goal, some 10 minutes, and some never successfully built their tower. I had groups that finished early watch the remaining groups to add a little "pressure." Afterwards we debriefed with the following discussion questions: Was anyone frustrated at all during the activity? If so how was it handled? What did you learn about yourself or others? Why was teamwork so important for this activity? What is so hard about teamwork? What did you do today to contribute to the teamwork on your team? What are some skills needed to be good at teamwork? Are you every in a situation where you must use teamwork? Is this always easy for you? Why or why not? How can we use what we learned through this experience in situations outside the game? Check out Teamwork: Cup Stack Take 2!
You need: white drawing sheet 15 by 15 cm black fineliner markers I found this lesson on Artsonia. Start in a corner and draw ONE line, the longest line: curved, straight, zigzag, with angles etc. The line has to fill the whole sheet and you may not pick up your marker from the sheet! The line may not hit or cross itself. And, the most important: the line has to end at the point it started. So be sure you're back in the beginning in time! When ready, draw with a pencil three or four geometric shapes on your sheet. Choose three colours marker per shape and colour them. Outline your shapes with the black fineliner.
For the past few weeks I’ve been pondering how to support teachers in documenting, organizing, and reflecting on their work and learning done in coaching cycles, particularly the use of evidence and data in supporting student achievement. I wanted teachers to have a lasting, tangible product to walk away with after the completion of coaching […]
Earlier this week, I broke out the cool new pens I got for Christmas and got to work on putting together my coaching cycle schedule for this next quarter. Creating new schedules throughout the year is a cool opportunity for us coaches. It’s kind of like having a mini beginning-of-school-year kick off more than just […]
If you're a new instructional coach, and you're reading this in real time, it's November. Even if you're not a new coach, but you're re...
Earlier this week, I broke out the cool new pens I got for Christmas and got to work on putting together my coaching cycle schedule for this next quarter. Creating new schedules throughout the year is a cool opportunity for us coaches. It’s kind of like having a mini beginning-of-school-year kick off more than just […]
If you remember, I originally had my planner set-up to also hold my coaching notes. While the system was working out okay, for a lot of reasons, I wasn’t really diggin’ it. So I took some time to rework it. Customized Covers Available at my Etsy Shop The first thing I needed was more space, since […]
You kick up your feet and take a sip of your iced peach green tea, as you look out at the sunny summer afternoon and smile. Oh how you love summer. Oh how you wish the summer days and land of no schedules would never go away. Ahhh… You take another sip and decide you should […]
It's May. Are you counting the days? If you answer no, I don't believe you. I love my job and I'm counting the days. These two things a...
As I was walking through Target the other day, I got all excited when I came across the “back to school” aisle. I’m pretty much like a little kid when it comes to back to school prep. I love it! One of my back to school purchases for this year was a new discbound agenda […]
If you remember, I originally had my planner set-up to also hold my coaching notes. While the system was working out okay, for a lot of reasons, I wasn’t really diggin’ it. So I took some time to rework it. Customized Covers Available at my Etsy Shop The first thing I needed was more space, since […]
A few weeks back, I was asked to record a video of myself conducting a coaching Kick-Off Meeting. First thought…eh. I was complimented by the ask, but I get a little squeamish about being recorded on video. Not just because I feel like my voice sounds weird and I’ll usually catch myself saying or doing […]
